John Kerry Divests Oil Sands Holdings In Suncor, Cenovus

(The Canadian Press)

John Kerry and his wife have agreed to divest holdings in a Canadian oil company, as well as dozens of other investments, in an effort to avoid conflicts of interest as the Massachusetts senator prepares to become America's next secretary of state.

The Canadian Press reported last week that Kerry had as much as US$750,000 invested in Suncor, a Calgary-based oil company whose CEO has urged the Obama administration to greenlight TransCanada's Keystone XL pipeline.

But federal ethics officials, acting independently of the White House, have determined the Suncor (TSX:SU) stock poses no conflict of interest threats. Kerry has also agreed to divest of as much as $31,000 in Cenovus Energy — another Calgary firm that has pushed for Keystone XL approval —within 90 days if he's confirmed secretary of state.